Assessment of Land Use/Land Cover Detection and Its Impact on the Human Environment Using Geospatial Techniques in the University of Port Harcourt Host Communities, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examines the use of GIS and Remote Sensing in Mapping Land Use/Land Cover changes in the University of Port Harcourt host communities, mainly Choba, Aluu and Alakahia, between 2005-2010 and 2010-2015, to recognise the changes that have taken place in these peri-urban areas within the period of study. The study aim is to detect and map the land use/land cover of the area over a period of 10 years (2005-2015). Three data set of Landsat Satellite images were layer-stacked, after which supervised classification in EARDAS imagine software was carried out and mapping in Arc GIS software were carried out. Five land use and land cover categories were distinguished: built-up areas, cultivation, vegetation, and water body. The results of the study show rapid growth in built-up land between 2010 and 2015, whereas the periods between 2005 and 2010 witnessed an increase in this class also. The rapid increase in built-up areas revealed by the study is due to the rapid urbanization and industrialization in the peri-urban area. It was further observed that the increasing population of students in the area brings about much more demand on housing, which resulted in a great detrimental effect on the land cover of the area in recent years. The study, therefore, recommends, amongst others, the regulation of land use in the peri-urban area, encouragement of afforestation by government and other critical stakeholders, and provision of a mitigating control measure to realistically address the contemporary issues of rapid urbanization in the peri-urban areas.